Power press



j I 1,642,252 1 Sept. 13, 1927. Y c LEDBETTER 4 POWER PRES S Filed Aug. 14. 1925 -2 Sheets-Sheet 1 III llllf INVENTOR .James ranged LedB H'er V 1,642,252 Sept. 13 J. c. BETTEQR POWER-PRESS Filed Aug. 14. 1925 2 sheets-shat '2 \IllII--I--- mu- 1 I o loll! ake .-INVENTOR\ "fame: l'am'rad Ledfeffer Patented Sept. 13, 1927.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JAMES GAMROD LEDBETTER, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR TO THE PROSPERITY COMPANY, INC., OF SYRACUSE, NEW YORK, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK POWER PRESS.

Application filed August 14, 1925. Serial No. 50,151.

This invention appertains to ironing machines or presses and more particularly to power presses or ironers for ironing laundered goods well as for garment clothes seam and edge pressing work.

An object of this invention is to produce an lmproved power press provided with wide opening jaws affording extended visibility of the work and a particular improvement is the timing means by which the pressing duration is adjustably timed orregula-ted to suit the requirements of .the work at hand.

An additional object is to produce a power press of very simple construction wherein is used a continuously running motor capable of imparting intermittent pressure operations, and to this end a freely swinging pendulous cam member travels over a continuously running pressure drive roller for a predetermined period of time to maintain compression between the jaws on the work, and when the cam reaches the end of its travel and the compression period is completed the pressing jaws are then automatically opened by the weight of the cam, and I provide a novel structure and mode of operation for securing these results.

Among other thlngs, an important object of the invention is to employ a continuously running motor as aforesaid without resort ing to the use of a clutch which is ofttimes employed in power presses to acquire the necessary start and stop motion. I acquire the intermittent press operation by an improved roller and cam combination and in doing so I take advantage of economy in power by employing a continuously running non-stop motor and eliminate the disadvantage ordinarily attending clutches and similar mechanisms. Thus by using a continuously running motor without a clutch, I 'greatly simplify power presses and ironers.

The accompanying drawing illustrates an example of the invention serving to disclose the principle and mode of operation and it is to be appreciated that changes may be made without departing from the principles involved.

Figure 1 shows a side elevation of the pressing machine closed and at the begin ning of the pressing operation.

Figure 2 shows a front view of the friction drive transmission and motor means embodying a press timer with graduations to 15 a cam frame 16. The cam frame 16 hangs pendulously from the rear end of the press leyer and a weight arm 17 is made integral with the cam frame 16. -A counter-balance we1ght 18 is adjustably carried on the arm 17 which. performs the double purpose of tilting or swinging the lower portion of the cam forwardly towards the front of the press and lifts the head 12 high above the buck 11 as well. The combined weight of the members 18 and 16 are employed to lift the head 12 while the weight alone of the counter-balance weight 18 is employed to t lt the cam frame 16 forwardly to dotted line position B which is the position of the cam 16 when the press is normally and fully open.

The lower end of the cam frame 16 carries a camway or face 20 which is offset somewhat from the vertical cam frame 16, and the rear lower edge of the cam is eccentric to the pivotal point 15 thereby enabling the cam 20 to climb upon a pressure roller 21. The remaining and greater portion of the cam-way 20 is made concentric to the center 15 thereby enabling the cam to normally traverse the roller 21 and maintain a uniform upward thrust against the rear end of the press'lever and thereby maintain uniformity of compression between the head and buck during the time which is required for the cam 20 to entirely traverse the roller 21.

An improved transmission and motor are employed for driving the pressure roller 21 so that the roller may be driven fast or slow as the occasion may demand so as to shorten or prolong the press period depending upon the nature of the work at hand.

To accomplish theseends, an electric motor 23 is installed on the frame and drives a shaft 24 on which a friction roller 25 is slidably mounted thereby adapting it to inove longitudinally on the shaft 24 and a spline groove 26 may be made in the shaft 24 which groove is engaged by a sliding rib integral with the roller 25 thereby positively drivingthe friction roller with the shaft 24 but at the same time enabling it to be moved longitudinallythereon. The friction roller 25 engages against and serves to drive a frictiondisk 27 pressed gently forward against the friction roller 25 by a spring 28. The friction disk 27 is anchored on the front end of a shaft 28 which is journaled in upright brackets 29. v

A drive pinion 31 is fixed on the shaft 28 and meshes with a gear 32 fixed on a shaft 33. The shaft 33 is anchored to a worm pinion 34 mounted in a gear-housing 35, The worm pinion 34 engages a worm wheel 36 and to the worm wheel 36 is fixed a final drive shaft 37 on which the aforesaid pres-' roller 21. To carry out this purpose, the

friction roller 25 is slidable back and forth on the shaft 24 as already described, and

thus by sliding the roller 25 outwardly near the rim of the friction disk 27, it follows that the drive mechanism leading through to the roller 21 is driven'much slower than when the roller 25 is adjusted back to a point near the center of the transmission disk 27.

The friction drive roller 25 is provided with a groove 41 in which a shifting fork 42 loosely engages. The lower end of the shifting fork.42 is carried on a screw 43 mounted in brackets 44 which brackets also support the shaft 24 thereabove. A crank 45 is fixed on the outer end of the screw 43 and by-rotating the crank the shifting fork 42 and drive roller 25 are moved back and forth in respect to the center of the large disk 27 and the rim thereof. A timin bar 46 is carried beneath the shifting for '42 and a pointer reads on the graduations to indicate the duration of the pressing period. By turning the crank 45 and bringing the roller 25 near the center of the friction disk 27, the pressure roller 21 is caused to revolve at rather high speed and thus more rapidly move the cam20 thereacross from front pos1- tion to rear position. By rotating-the crank 45 inthe other direction, the friction'roller 25 is moved farther away from the [center of the friction disk 27 thus slowingdown the speed of the roller 21.

I By referring to Figure 3, it is observed that the cam frame 16 is ofiset from the cam face 20 which is to say that the suspended pendulous frame16 may swing clearof the pressure roller 21, but the cam 20 is carried in line therewith. The ofi'set frame is integrally made with the cam 20 and is indicated at 48 as beingoifset to entirely clear the roller 21. Thus by making the cam 20 in an oifset manner, it follows that the cam frame 16 may swing clear of the roller 21 when the ress head 12 is up in open position there y enabling the counter-balanceweight 18 to maintain the cam frame 16 at its forwardmost normal inoperative position.

A. manual control means by which the pressure operation of the press is initiated is shown in the form of a rod 50 having a stop roller 51 on the rear end thereof and a knob handle 52 on the front end thereof. A spring 53 returns the handle 52 to normal position after it is thrust rearwardly by the operator to start the cam frame 16 onto the roller 21 against the urge of the weight 18. When the press is 0 en, the cam frame 16 hangs down, forwar y and against the stop roller 51 and away from the continuously 1 revolving roller 21.

In the use of the machine, the operator first spreads the work uponthe buck 11 and then draws the head down by the handle 54.

The cam is lifted from dotted line position *3 up to high position and is still clear of the roller 21. The operator now starts the pressing operation by pressing the handle 52 rearwardly which causes the cam 20 to ride u' on the continuously running roller 21 an the cam continues to traverse the roller 'until it drops downofl of the roller to the rear thereof to dotted line position 0 which shows the cam in position at the moment when it drops off of the roller. The

weight 18 immediately acts to swing the cam, frame from position 0 to position B at the end of the pressing'operation with the press jaws open.

ing the position of the roller 25 either by drawing it in towards the center of the disk 27 to shorten "the pressing period or by moving it outwardly towards the rim thereof to lengthen the duration of the pressing '-adapted to traverse the drive roller, pressing jaws one of which is connected with the cam and is adapted to be acted on by the cam, and a variable speed transmission adapted to drive the roller to vary the time required for the roller to traverse the cam.

\ 2. A. press comprising in combination,

motor means, a roller rotated. thereby, a cam The pressing duration is varied by dating-'- having a working surface adapted to traverse the drive roller, means forming part of the cam 'structure which enables it to travel back to its original position without being acted on by the drive roller, pressing jaws adapted to be acted on by the cam a variable speed transmission connected with the motor to drive the roller, and graduated means cooperating with the transmission by which an operator may set the variable transmission to produce a pressing operation of any'desired time.

3. A press comprising in combination,

motor means, a pressure roller rotated thereby, a cam made with a working suriace adapted to traverse the roller, a change speed transmission driven by the motor and connected with the roller, pressing jaws one of which is connected with the cam and acted on by the cam, a manually operable device to start the cam working surface across the roller to produce jaw compression, and a variable speed press timer means cooperating with the roller ada ted to vary the pressing duration inclu ing a manually operated means to set the change speed transmission, and calibrated means to indicate the desired speed. t

In testimon. whereof I afiix my signature.

JAME CAMROD LEDBETTEB. 

